If We Could Start Anew
by SilverNightsSky
Summary: Set during the "Age of Innocence" in 1961, Bella Swan is bored and longs for something new and exciting to reignite her enjoyment of life. Will she find what she's looking for when she crosses paths with greaser Edward Cullen? - AU/AH/Possible lemons
1. Chapter 1

**DISCLAIMER:** We all know who owns these characters. Stephenie Meyer is the queen, and I am but a minion playing in her court.

Special thanks to hazed_confused and isnoggedmalfoy for being my first chapter guinea pigs. =) Muchos besos!

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_Tempe, Arizona - Early Fall 1961_

I sat at the counter of the diner, lazily sipping my cherry soda. Paul Anka's newest song was blaring on the jukebox in the corner, and the lyrics seemingly began to mock me in my current state of thinking.

_Love me warm and tender, dear_

_Love me warm like the glow of the morning_

_Love me warm and tender, dear_

_Love me so, just as though I'm the only one_

The words echoed in my head, and burned within my chest. _Yeah, if only it were so easy_, I thought. Jacob, my steady boyfriend, occupied the stool next to me. He was rambling on about something or another that had happened during football practice that day, and I found myself effortlessly going through the motions of appearing as though I was listening intently. It was the same routine, just a different day with different dresses.

I'd known Jacob my entire life, our parents were all friends in high school. It was at the strong influence by our parents that we had even begun dating two years prior, though I had always known he had harbored romantic feelings for me. I won't deny that I enjoyed his company then, or that I felt like my heart was going to beat out of my chest when we shared our first kiss, but things change. More specifically, _I_ had changed. I woke up one morning and I realized that my entire life had practically been predetermined for me. I would marry Jacob after we finished high school, we would move into a quaint little two bedroom house in the same neighborhood we grew up in, he would go off to work every morning and come home every evening while I stayed at home and raised our family. It was the same kind of life my mother had lead, and my grandmother before her, and everyone else our neighborhood.

I desperately hoped for something more, something better than this. I didn't quite know what, but some form of excitement would be nice. I didn't want to be bored with my life, I wanted to enjoy it like I knew I was supposed to. I wanted to be able to love Jacob the way he loves me, or at the very least love him back even a little.

"Bella…Bella!" Jacob shook my shoulder, and I snapped out of my daze. His eyes were asking me a question, but I had no idea what my answer was supposed to be.

"Oh, Jacob I'm so sorry. I must have spaced out for a minute there." It wasn't a complete lie, I suppose. "What were you saying?"

"I was reminding you about Homecoming. Coach thinks it's going to be a bigger deal than usual since we're playing McClintock and all, so he wants us over at the stadium earlier this year," he explained. "So I'm not going to be able to drive you to the game, you'll have to ride with my folks."

The school board had approved the formation of McClintock High the year before, but since the actual school hadn't been built yet, we were sharing our campus at Tempe High with the McClintock students. It was a strange arrangement, we attended our classes in the mornings, and they attended theirs in the afternoons. It didn't make much sense to me, this separation even though we were technically attending the same school. Jacob didn't care, because it added fuel to this whole rivalry thing everybody was hyping up that made the upcoming Homecoming game exciting to him.

"Right. I remember," I told him. "You know my parents never miss one of your games though, especially Homecoming. I'll just let them know I won't be going early with you and need to ride with them, it's not a big deal." I couldn't understand why he was trying to build it up to be a bigger issue than it really was, he knew my parents would be going. They adored him and my father had always treated him as if he were his own son, a side effect from having me and my younger sister, Alice.

"I know," he said as he took a French fry from his plate, "I'm just…I don't know. I just want to make sure you're taken care of. I wouldn't want you to end up being stranded with no way to get to the stadium, and I need my girl there to cheer me on." He rubbed my back as he said the last part. I know he meant well, but his view of the Homecoming game and my part of it wasn't aiding in my mood.

I put on a smile for him and gave him a reassuring look. "Jacob, you don't need to worry about a thing. I will be there, with both of our families, and we'll all be ready to take you out for a victory sundae at the ice cream parlor afterward."

His face lit up, I'd obviously said the right thing. I didn't know whether it was the reassurance that nobody important to him would be missing, or the prospect of ice cream, but his fears were calmed for now. "I love you, Bella," he said, and gave me a soft kiss on the cheek. I felt nothing.

"Me too, Jacob." I didn't want to lie to him, but I didn't want to hurt him either. I quickly looked away from his eyes and surveyed my schoolbooks that were lying on the countertop next to my cherry soda. As my gaze focused, I noticed that there was something missing from my stack. I groaned as the realization set in.

"What's wrong?" Jacob asked.

"I must have left my History book in my locker, it's not here," I replied. I looked back at the clock hanging over the jukebox, the hands pointed to 4:15. I was going to have to leave now if I was going to make it back to school before the hallway doors were locked at 4:30. "I need to go back." I hopped off my stool and quickly started gathering my things.

"Do you want me to give you a ride?"

"No, don't worry about me," I answered. He still had half a burger on the plate in front of him, no sense in making him leave it behind. "You can stay here and finish your food, I'll walk back home after I get my book." It wasn't very far to my house from school, just about four blocks. I needed time to myself anyways. I said goodbye quickly, and promised I would see him again in the morning when he came to pick me and Alice up for school.

I managed to make it back to school with five minutes to spare. The hallways were empty, the McClintock students had finished their classes at 4:00 and had all but disappeared already. _You'd never think that we were sharing our school with anyone else, _I thought. I made my way to my locker quickly and spun the numbers to my combination to unlock it. Just as I had expected, my History book was tucked neatly into the corner. I sighed and grabbed it, adding it to the stack already in my left arm. I slammed my locker door shut and turned quickly to leave, not realizing that I was no longer alone.

As I turned, my body slammed into another taller, wider, and firmer body. My ears registered the surprised grunt of a male voice as we made contact. I let out a yelp, and my books fell to the ground, along with those of the intruding stranger. I didn't even look up, I immediately dropped to my knees and began to sort through the mixed pile of textbooks and notebooks.

"Why don't you watch where you're going?" the male voice asked, clearly irritated. I felt him kneel down as well and he began to pick up his own items.

"I'm so sorry, I didn't realize anybody else was here. I didn't hear you behind me," I explained. When I grabbed my last book I stood up, and finally looked at the person I had run into. My breath hitched as I registered the most stunning color of hair I had ever seen; a striking deep reddish brown, nearly bronze. It was slicked back at the sides, and a little messy at the top, like he never quit running his fingers through it. My thoughts were confirmed as the stranger ran a hand through the long locks at the top while he rose to his feet and looked me in the eye. If I thought his bronze hair was striking, they were no match for his eyes. Deep green and piercing, almost like emeralds. I suddenly felt like I was lost, and I was most certainly at a loss for words.

He was by far the most handsome boy I had ever seen, and the complete opposite of Jacob. Jacob was tall, dark, and broad; this boy was tall but not towering, fair, and lean. Jacob was an athlete and looked like one, and this boy looked more like he was ready to go drag racing with James Dean. Jacob was soft, clean cut, and dressed in slacks and collared shirts; this boy was chisled, rugged and windblown and wore a weathered leather jacket, close fitting t-shirt, and jeans. He looked like a Hollywood dream come true.

"You might want to try being more observant in the future," he said curtly, snapping me out of my haze. "The universe doesn't revolve around a single being, you know." His eyes left mine as he stepped around me and approached the cluster of lockers that I had just turned from. To my surprise, he began spinning the dial to the locker next to mine.

"You…you _go_ here?" I asked, not able to hide the surprise in my voice. Surely I would've known if this handsome stranger attended my own school.

"No, I just find it amusing to loiter in school hallways after all the students have left," his voice dripped with sarcasm. "Then I open random lockers and mix up the contents for an added kick, just to mess with people's heads."

I looked down at my shoes in an attempt to fight the humiliation. "Well, you don't have to be rude about it," I said softly as I clutched my books tightly to my chest. I heard him snort, then slam the locker door shut. I raised my head to look at him again as he turned back towards me.

"We're giving lessons in etiquette now? Well, my humble apologies," he rolled his eyes. "Yeah, sure, I go here. At least until we get our own miserable cage of a school campus."

"McClintock?" I guess that would explain it, I didn't know many of the McClintock students. Most of them lived outside of Tempe, in some other part of the ever-expanding Phoenix area.

I could see in his face that he was prepared to deliver another sarcastic remark, but he stopped himself. Instead he sighed and let out a small laugh, as if he were resigned to just drop all acts. "Yeah. By the look on your face I figure I'm correct in assuming I'm on your home turf right now."

"If you want to call it that," I shrugged. I shifted my books to my left arm and offered him my free hand in a friendly gesture. "I'm Bella Swan."

He hesitated for a brief moment, just barely long enough for me to nearly regret being so bold. I held in a sigh of relief when he accepted my hand into his. My heart began to flutter for reasons I couldn't understand, and it didn't stop when he let go. "Bella Swan?" he questioned. "Your parents really named you Bella Swan?"

I blushed. "It's short for Isabella. It was all my mother's doing. I guess she just couldn't restrain herself from the temptation…she enjoys fairy tales."

He gave me warm smile, his guard still down. "I'm Edward. Cullen."

_Edward Cullen_. It suited him well. Despite his rugged appearance, he looked like an Edward. I was about to speak again, but at that moment we were interrupted when the entrance door was slammed open, both of us turning towards the intrusion. Leaning in from outside was a good-looking blonde-haired boy dressed in a similar fashion to Edward.

"E!" He shouted. "C'mon man, we have to go!" As quickly as he appeared, he disappeared, letting the door fall shut. Edward turned back to me, and I could see that in the brief moment that we had been interrupted his guard had gone back into place.

"Well Bella," he said, "…it's been stimulating." He ran a hand through his hair again as he turned and jogged quickly out the door.

I stood motionless for the briefest of moments, and quickly made my way outside after him. My mind was in a whirlwind of thoughts and emotions, and I could hardly distinguish one from the other. I reached the sidewalk near the parking lot just in time to see Edward jump into the passenger seat of the shiny black Impala convertible with the blonde boy behind the wheel. My eyes followed the car as it peeled out of the school grounds and into the street. When the car was no longer in my sight I began to walk slowly towards home. As I walked, I couldn't shake the feeling that my life had just possibly been changed forever with the introduction of Edward Cullen.

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**AN: **I hope you enjoyed the first chapter, and I hope you enjoy my retro-take on the characters we love. =)

A little bit of background: Tempe High School really did share their campus with McClintock students in '65, and the schedules were set up the same. My story is set in '61, so I'm admittedly taking a few liberties with a few historical facts.


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: **I am SO sorry it's taken me so long to post the second chapter! This is the first story I've had going in about 8 years, so I'm still working on getting myself back into shape. And then I got sick, and my boyfriend got sick, and other aspects of reality came into play that made me move the chapter to the backburner for a few days here and there. Anyways, enough excuses, I hope you find it worth the wait! I'll be posting pictures on my profile of Jasper and Edward's sweet rides, because they're so delicious I can't keep them to myself. =)

Thanks to hazed_confused for being my Chapter 2 guinea pig. =)

**Disclaimer:** SM owns, Silver rents.

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**CHAPTER TWO**

**EPOV**

I was in my room lying on my back and listening to a stack of 45s with my eyes closed. The blend of the music and lyrics washed over me and gave me a near instantaneous calm feeling. Music the way I chose to unwind after a long day, unlike my cousin Jasper, who preferred hitting the bottle to relax. Sometimes I might join him for a drink or two, but I always ended up choosing to ride out my buzz in my room with some Otis Redding records.

I found it humorous that the reputation of "The Cullen Boys" was so skewed. I was considered the dangerous delinquent for no reason other than I ride a motorcycle and tend to keep to myself, and Jasper was thought to be pretty wholesome for the most part despite our greaser ways. Nothing could be further from the truth.

Jasper was always up to no good, mostly when it came to girls, but parents loved him because he was charming and respectful…at least to their faces. Pity may have also played a small part, as everyone knew that the reason Jasper was living with us was that he'd lost his parents in a car accident back in Houston a few years earlier. Of course, he had been devastated, and I knew that although he had dealt with his grief already, he was milking it for all it was worth. What girl could resist the opportunity to be the one to heal the orphaned boy with the sweet southern charm? His mint condition '58 Chevy Impala had yet to hear the word "no" uttered in the backseat. Hell, he had a better track record than Seabiscuit.

My mother's influence on me was far stronger than I would ever openly admit. She raised me to be a gentleman, and chivalrous like my father. I didn't date much, but when I did on occasion take a girl out I always defied the greaser reputation and treated her respectfully. I could easily be on par with Jasper in the girl department if I chose, but it just wasn't my deal. That's not to say I hadn't gotten any action, I just didn't really see the point in a string of meaningless relationships, if you could even call them that. I just wasn't the "notch in the bedpost" kind of guy, and I wasn't interested in the kinds of girls that wanted that kind of thing either. I wanted someone intelligent who I could actually hold a conversation with. Someone who won me over with what she had to offer between her ears rather than between her legs.

As Otis started to sing his soulful melody of lonely arms, I let out a sigh and rested my hands under my head. I stared at the ceiling and remembered the girl from earlier in the afternoon. _Isabella Swan_. I cracked a small smile, still incredulous that someone actually had the gall to name their kid that. It seemed fitting though. Bella Swan was by no means Greta Garbo or Marilyn Monroe, but she certainly wasn't unattractive either. She was the perfect height for her slender frame, not too tall or too short, the top of her head reaching just under my chin. Her dark brown hair was pulled back into a ponytail, but I could estimate that it probably fell long midway down her back. The most striking thing about her was her eyes, they were like melted chocolate, and they held a level of mystique I'd never seen reflected in anyone else before. I found myself wondering what made her tick.

I could tell she was normally the shy quiet type, since she was blushing for the entirety of our short interaction with each other. What sparked my curiosity was that she had challenged me when she muttered about my being rude. She had said it so quietly it might as well have been to herself, yet she had clearly intended for me to hear. It was such an insignificant thing, but I couldn't help myself as my mind kept wandering back to that moment, wondering what strength might be hiding behind the meek exterior. It would be easy to simply dismiss our meeting as nothing more than an a slightly inconvenient encounter with a clumsy and shy girl, but something kept gnawing at me, telling me that to dismiss Bella Swan might not be the wisest decision to make.

My thoughts were interrupted as I suddenly heard a tapping on my window. I sat up and reached for the volume knob on my record player to turn it down. I pulled back one of my black curtains just as the window was slid open from the outside. _What the hell? _As my eyes adjusted to the darkness beyond the window, I saw the small blonde headed figure of Jessica Stanley, Jasper's flavor of the week. She didn't seem to notice that she had the wrong window as she sat herself up on the ledge and swung her legs around to enter the room.

"What the hell do you think you're doing?" I asked the intruder as she dusted off her skirt.

She finally looked up at me, startled, when she heard me speak. She quickly looked around the room and registered her surroundings. "Whoops," she said in her annoying breezy Marilyn wannabe voice. "I guess I must've miscounted the windows, I thought this was Jasper's bedroom."

I suppressed an annoyed groan as I rolled my eyes. I didn't like Jessica one iota, but I couldn't very well shove her back out the window either, no matter how much I wanted to. _Damn my mother's influence_. Jessica was the typical kind of girl I couldn't stand. Physically she was a beautiful girl, but her awareness of this fact was at the core of everything I hated about her and everything that made her hideous in my eyes. Mercifully I didn't have to spend more than a minute alone with her, as I was attempting to find the right words, Jasper burst into the room.

"Hey E, I need a favor--"he stopped midthought when he saw Jessica. The look on his face went from pleading to pensive to smoldering all in the span of two seconds. "Hazel…doll-face, what are you doing in here?"

Jessica's face scrunched, but I had to give her credit, she didn't lose all control at being called the wrong name. "Jasper," she started slowly, "My name is _not_ 'Hazel'." She folded her arms across her ample chest and huffed, waiting for an explanation.

I knew what Jasper's excuse would be, and my suspicions were confirmed when he spoke again. "Of course it's not, doll. But it _is_ the color of those beautiful eyes I keep getting lost in." He cupped her face and tilted it up towards his when he spoke, forcing her eyes to lock with his. It was like watching a magician pull a rabbit out of a hat, and she bought it. Her knees wobbled as if she was about to tip over if it weren't for his hold on her. _I seriously feel like vomiting…_

"Um, Jazz," I said, alerting him to my presence. "_Hazel_ here mistook my window for yours and intruded into my room. Think maybe you guys can redirect back to yours now?" The last thing in the world I needed was to get kicked out of my own room so Jasper could screw Jessica in my bed. I shuddered at the thought.

Jasper licked his lips and grabbed Jessica by the waist, pulling her back towards the door. "Come on Hazel, we don't want to give Edward here a free show."

"I don't mind if he wants to watch," she said, trying to sound seductive, but instead just sounding ridiculous. How Jasper was able to stick it to her was beyond me. I supposed he possessed an amazing ability to tune her out.

"…um, yeah. As _tempting_ as that offer sounds," I said as sarcastically as possible, "I'd much rather you keep your sordid sex lives to yourselves. I don't particularly fancy seeing either of you naked." I ushered them quickly out my door as I spoke and breathed a sigh of relief once I was able to shut it. I leaned back against it for a moment before turning the lock on the doorknob, and then decided it might be a good safety measure to reshut and lock my window as well, just in case anymore of Jasper's dimwitted playthings decided to stop by.

I turned the volume on the record player back up again, effectively drowning out the sound of the muffled moans that were starting to filter in from the next room. _Nice to know he's not wasting any time._ It was a good thing that my parents' bedroom was on the opposite side of the house from ours, ensuring not only that we were safe from having to overhear _their_ nighttime activities but that we were also safe from having ours overheard. While I'm sure my folks had had the house built in this floorplan with the assurance of privacy in mind, I doubt they imagined how advantageous it really would be for me and Jasper.

I looked at the clock that hung over my desk. 8:00PM, still early. I didn't have any assignments left to complete for the next day of school, and television wasn't sounding appealing either. As the soft sound of a rhythmic thumping started to disrupt the flow of the records I was listening to, I decided it would be best to escape out of the house for a little bit. I quickly put on my leather jacket, checking to make sure my smokes were still in the pocket, and grabbed my composition notebook off my desk.

That notebook was the key to my sanity. It wasn't a journal or a diary, those descriptions were too restrictive. It was more like a random collection of my thoughts and things that I found inspiring. I didn't like to document things about my life, it seemed trivial to me. Rather, I liked to keep track of lyrics and quotes that triggered a response in me. On occasion I even wrote my own poetry and lyrics. Writing cleared my head and gave me an outlet to get a grip on reality.

I climbed out my window and made my way to my bike, my pride and joy. Most people assumed that Harley Davidsons were the best bikes out there, but they were wrong. To a true connoisseur, Indians were the true leader in the motorcycle market. They made them first, and they made them best in my book. It was too bad the company folded in '53, but I was lucky enough to be able to track down one of the last true Indian Chiefs ever made and fix it up to mint condition. There were a lot of fakes out there, imported from England, fashioned like the originals and stamped with the trademark name, but none like my baby.

I rode out of my neighborhood streets and turned south, heading the direction of South Mountain. The mountain was one of my favorite places, the one undisturbed area of natural beauty in the middle of our ever-expanding metropolis. It was too dark for me to ride the narrow and winding roads all the way to the top, but there were plenty of picnic areas at the base that were deserted after sundown. I liked it that way, empty and secluded.

I parked my bike next to one of the tables when I approached the area, leaving my headlight on to provide myself with the illumination I would need for writing in the darkness. I sat down at the table and pulled out my smokes, notebook, and pen. I lit one cigarette, relishing the delight of the first drag, and took a moment before opening the notebook.

A wave of panic hit me when I started to flip through the pages. _What the hell?! SHIT!_

_

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**BPOV**

"What's eatin' you?" my younger sister, Alice, asked me after dinner while we were settling on the sofa to watch I Love Lucy. I looked at her, confused. Alice was only a year younger than me, she was born prematurely. My mother always said it was because she was so eager to enjoy life and it's splendors that she couldn't possibly wait two more months inside the womb, she had to get out immediately. The doctors didn't think she would survive, but she proved them all wrong. A medical miracle, they all called her, but we knew my mother was right. Alice was just eager to enjoy life as soon as possible, and she never stopped. I envied her for that. She was smaller than most other 16 year old girls, but she had spunk, gumption, and strength. She was also extremely sharp, and always seemed to know about something that was happening before it actually happened.

"Huh?" I asked. Her brown eyes were scrutinizing my face, and I had no idea what she was looking for.

"I don't know, you just seem…distracted, I guess," she said, still searching my face for answers. "Something's different. I mean, you're always quiet…but now it seems like…you're actually focusing on something else."

If I was confused before, now I was most definitely lost. "What on earth are you talking about?"

"You're usually quiet because you just don't seem to care much about whatever's going on. Like you're bored," she explained. "But tonight…you seem like you're actually _thinking_ about something."

I rolled my eyes at her remark. "Gee, thanks Alice," I replied sarcastically. "It's so nice to know how you really feel about me."

She shoved my shoulder lightly. "Stop it! You know what I mean," she tried to backtrack. "Something's changed, is all I'm trying to say." She sighed, and turned her focus back to the TV as Lucy and Ethel plotted to steal John Wayne's footprints from Grauman's Chinese Theatre.

I turned my own eyes toward the TV as well. I was finding it hard to believe that mere hours after my chance meeting with the mysterious Edward Cullen any shift in my mentality was noticeable, but Alice did have a tendency to pick up on the tiniest of nuances. I excused myself to go to my room before the show was even over, deciding that I needed to be alone for a while.

I sat down at my desk and turned my focus to my history homework. I flipped my book open to the chapter we were studying on the Civil War, and grabbed my composition notebook for my notes. When I opened the notebook, I quickly realized there was something very wrong. My handwriting was not on the inside of the pages, nor was my history notes. Instead, there were the quick and hurried, yet elegant, scrawlings of a male hand. _Oh no._ I flipped to the front page of the notebook, and found the inscription: _This notebook and all it contains belong to Edward A. Cullen_.

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**A/N:** Thanks to everyone who's put the story on alert, favorited me and/or the story, and reviewed. I seriously wasn't expecting that after just one chapter! You make me smile.


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: **Much love and thanks to hazed_confused and isnoggedmalfoy for being my chapter guinea pigs again, thanks for helping me keep my head on straight for the past few months. =)

**Disclaimer:** You know the drill. Stephenie owns it all, I just play.

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**Chapter Three**

**BPOV**

I had a difficult time concentrating in any of my classes the next morning. My mind kept going back to the small but simple fact that I was going to see Edward again, this time out of necessity instead of my clumsiness. Part of me had to laugh at the situation; it seemed like something you might see on television, the inadvertent swapping of identical looking notebooks.

To say that I was surprised when I realized Edward and I had picked up the wrong notebooks would be an understatement. For whatever reason the thought to double-check what we picked up didn't occur to me. I didn't read it, not wanting to be nosey, but I did see enough to gather that this was more than just a notebook, and must've been deeply personal. I definitely wasn't expecting to see that I had in my possession what looked to be a journal. When I first opened the book, the scrawling of a set of lyrics had caught my eye before I flipped to the front and confirmed what I was holding.

_Deepening shadows gather splendor as day is done  
Fingers of night will soon surrender the setting sun  
I count the moments darling till you're here with me  
Together at last at twilight time_

I had recognized the words almost instantly; they were the chorus to one of my favorite songs.  
I was quite surprised, even though I'd only met him once for a matter of minutes, I didn't get the impression that Edward was the type that might keep a journal. I thought greasers were the kind of boys who sat around drinking beers, smoking, and racing their cars down the boulevard; not keeping a journal of personal thoughts and favorite lyrics.

"Hell-o! Earth to Bella!" a voice shrilled, shaking me out of my haze. I was in study hall, and my friend Jessica was demanding my attention.

"Sorry," I said sheepishly, a slight flush rising to my cheeks. "I guess I'm just a little distracted today."

Jessica gave me a pointed look, the kind that said she smelled gossip, and it was time to dish. "Bella…there's something you're keeping from me."

_Why must I constantly be surrounded by people with a sixth sense?_ I sighed. Better to get this over with now than let it sit and fester. "Well…do you happen to know anything about…Edward Cullen?"

"Edward _Cullen_?" she gaped. "Seriously? You're asking me about _Edward Cullen_?" It didn't surprise me that she knew who I was talking about; Jessica had eyes and ears all over the Phoenix area. She knew everything about everyone, and then some.

"Yeah," I said. "I, um…well, I met him by accident yesterday. You know me and my inability to walk a straight line without finding something to knock into. Well, yesterday it was him."

"You knocked into Edward Cullen?" She said it as more of a sigh, as if she were actually _jealous_ of the clumsy mistake.

"Are you going to keep questioning everything I say?" This was going to get old really fast if she didn't start talking to me like a normal person again.

"Sorry, but you can't blame me for being a little surprised," she said. "You're in your own little Bella and Jacob bubble, and I didn't think you knew any of the McClintock students. I certainly never thought you'd have an encounter with Edward Cullen."

I rolled my eyes. "I'm not in a 'Bella and Jacob' bubble…am I?"

"Bells, I don't think there's a day in your life you haven't seen Jacob. And he's always at your place, or you're always at his. Your lives are pretty intertwined; I'd say that's a bubble."

I mentally groaned. Having it spelled out to my face like that made my dilemma with my feelings even more confusing. "Whatever, forget the bubble," I said, wanting to get back to the intended point. "So what do you know about him?"

Jessica thought for a moment. "Well, not too much really. He's sort of a loner, but he has a reputation for being wild. He hangs out mostly with his cousin, Jasper Hale. He's the blonde boy with the black Impala. The Cullens took him in when his parents were killed in some freak car accident back in Houston."

"Really? That's terrible…" I couldn't imagine having to lose your parents like that while you were still young.

"I know, right? Don't feel too sorry for him though, from what I hear the back seat of his Impala has gotten to be pretty popular, if you know what I mean." The look of shock on my face must have been pretty apparent, because she started to laugh at me. "Don't act so surprised Bella! You know how greasers are, and Jasper is really good-looking."

I shrugged. "He's cute I suppose. I think Edward is better looking."

She raised an eyebrow at me. "Oh really?"

I slapped her arm lightly. "Don't go reading into what I just said. Please, for the sake of my sanity? I'm allowed to admit when I think someone is nice-looking, right?"

"Of course you are, I'm just surprised since you never do," she said. "Back to the original point though, knocking into him aside, why exactly do you want to know about Edward Cullen?"

I wasn't sure how much I wanted to divulge to her. Should I tell her about our accidental notebook swap and the journal I had in my possession? I felt like I was teetering on the hilt of a double-edged sword.

"I don't know, he just seems…different. It's just curiosity getting the best of me I suppose." It wasn't a complete fabrication, just a mere omission of certain details.

Jessica leaned forward and propped her elbow on her desk to rest her chin in her hand. "He _is_ rather mysterious, isn't he?" she sighed. For a brief moment her eyes glazed over, I didn't even want to know what was going on in her head. She snapped out of her fantasy quickly. "All I know is what I just told you. There are a few people besides Jasper that I see him around with on occasion, but he mostly just keeps to himself."

"Why do you think that is?" I asked.

Jessica shrugged and twisted her ponytail between her fingers. "Who knows? I don't know of anyone who's gotten close to him. I've heard he's no saint either when it comes to girls, but none of the girls he's rumored to have fooled around with will talk."

"Maybe it's not true?" I suggested. She shrugged, and cracked open her Biology textbook, seemingly having had her fill of the conversation.

I wasn't foolish enough to believe every word of gossip I ever encountered, not to suggest that Jessica was either. If all the rumors going around school were true, then there would certainly be a thing or two said about me and Jacob that would leave my mother none too pleased. This alone was enough to convince me that there must be more to this mysterious Edward Cullen than popular belief, and the small glimpse I had into his head with his journal supported my theory.

My mind was made up then and there; I was determined to get to know the real Edward Cullen. I had to unravel the mystery.

**EPOV**

I was more than a little irritated when I had flipped the pages of what I thought was my journal, only to discover that instead I was holding Bella Swan's history notes. I had escaped my house and Jasper's latest conquest to be alone with my thoughts, and my thoughts didn't include the timeline and battle dates of the Civil War. I had cursed myself outloud for not bothering to make sure I had picked up the right notebook after the girl had slammed into me, and then immediately thereafter I began to chuckle at the situation. Whether she knew it or not, Bella Swan certainly made a lasting impression.

If it had been anyone else that picked up my journal I might've been worried about the security of my private thoughts, but I knew they would be safe with Bella. She didn't strike me as the type to stand at the top of the bleachers with a bullhorn, reading my words as if they were the homeroom announcements. I doubted she would even read it herself, at least not beyond whatever peek she must have had when she opened it expected to see her class work.

I would know the answer soon enough, I had arrived to school earlier than usual so that I could wait for her by our lockers and make the exchange. I found myself in unfamiliar territory, waiting in anticipation to see a girl for only a brief moment. I wasn't sure what it was that was making me look forward to seeing her so much. Perhaps it was the chance to gather more clues to help reveal the mysterious creature that she was. Something inside me was dying to figure her out.

The shrill sound of the bell ringing to dismiss the final class of the morning students shook me out of my thoughts. I scanned the masses as everyone filed out of the classrooms, hoping to find her quickly so as not to draw too much attention.

Like some magnetic force I couldn't explain, I felt her presence before I even saw her. The right side of my body felt like it was humming with a change in energy. I shifted myself so my right shoulder was leaning against our lockers, and glanced down at the ground for a brief moment. As soon as I brought my head back up, I saw her.

She was walking with one of her girlfriends, whom I recognized as Jessica Stanley. Jasper had brought her around to the house once or twice to hang out and drink some beers. She was exactly his type: blonde, leggy, bubbly, she could be a pinup model candidate. She was a nice enough girl, and pretty enough I supposed, but she was nothing in comparison to Bella.

Bella was much prettier than I had originally remembered. She was actually quite beautiful, in a less obvious and more natural way than Jessica. The Arizona sun seemed to have no effect on the coloring of her fair skin, as she was remarkably powder light. Her features were delicate, but her eyes popped and sparkled, despite trying to hide what looked to me like a hint of sadness. _There's the mystery…_

She was fast approaching, still caught up in her conversation with Jessica. She finally shifted her gaze just as she reached our lockers, and she reacted like a deer caught in headlights, wide eyes and all. It took all my might not to burst into a fit of laughter. Instead, I pulled her notebook from my locker.

"I, um…I believe this belongs to you," I said as I held it out to her. A pink flush quickly spread from her nose all the way across her cheeks to her ears, and she gave me a timid smile as she took the notebook from my hand. Had my heart been ice, it would've melted at the sight. This girl was fucking adorable.

"Thanks," she said. She added it to her stack and moved to her locker, quickly spinning the dial on the combination lock. When she opened it she reached in and produced another notebook, and offered it to me. "And I believe _this_ belongs to you."

I couldn't help the smile that came when I took the book from her. "You have no clue how insane I almost went when I thought for a split second this was lost," I told her. "Imagine having your sanity wrapped up in a flimsy composition notebook. Stupid, huh?"

She smiled more fully this time and shook her head. "No, not at all. I understand. But just so you know, I didn't read it."

"I didn't think you would," I answered honestly. I couldn't help myself though, I had to tease her. "…not even a peek?" She had to have seen at least something when she discovered it wasn't her notes.

"Well…I mean, I didn't," she stammered. "There was a glimpse of something, but I …well, not on purpose…"

I couldn't hold it in this time, I had to let out a little laugh. She was trying so hard not to dig herself into a ditch, and it was adorable. "It's okay, really. What did you see?"

Her face was bright red now. "Nothing really, just…well…The Platters are one of my favorite groups so…"

"Ah, yes," I answered as she trailed off. "I'm guessing you saw the lyrics to Twilight Time?"

She nodded. "It's actually my favorite song of theirs, which is why it caught my eye I guess."

"Well, Bella Swan, you've managed to impress me. It's one of their less popular songs, I would've pegged you for a Smoke Gets in Your Eyes kind of girl."

She shrugged. "Well that's a good song too, and I really love it…but I guess Twilight Time just speaks to me more."

She didn't elaborate, and I wasn't going to push, though I had to admit to myself that this admission made me all the more intrigued by her. "I guess we have that in common then," I said, and gave her a smile.

I finally noticed that Jessica was had still been right at Bella's side during our exchange, and once I saw the look on her face I tried my damnedest to maintain my composure and not laugh straight out. She looked ridiculous, with her wide incredulous eyes and mouth agape. I'm sure Jasper would've taken advantage of the moment to make an inappropriate joke, had he been there.

"Well, Bella," I said, "It was pleasant seeing you again under better circumstances. Maybe we'll cross paths again in the future."

Her eyes sparkled, and she gave me another warm smile. "I hope so, Edward."

With that, I returned the smile, pushed off the wall, and began making my way toward my first class. _I am most definitely making sure our paths cross again_.

* * *

**Author's Note: **

I am so sorry everyone that it has taken me an eternity to update again. Getting the swirling ideas in my head to lock down long enough for me to get them out is challenging, but rest assured I'm trying my hardest to get quality chapters out of them. Anyways, apologies aside, I hope you've enjoyed the latest installment and that you've found it worth the wait. Please review when you're done!!


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